THE national government’s outstanding debt is expected to balloon to P21.5 trillion next year, latest data from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) showed.
Under the just-submitted National Expenditure Program for 2027, some adjustments were made to the budget and other borrowing programs.
Domestic debt was projected to account for the bulk of next year’s total debt stock at P14.28 trillion, with the remaining P7.19 trillion to come from external debt.
This year, outstanding debt is expected to hit P19.77 trillion, slightly higher than the previous projection of P19.06 trillion.
The national government’s outstanding debt climbed to a new record high of P19.07 trillion in June, the Treasury reported last month.
It was higher by P518.98 billion compared to the P18.55 trillion seen at the end of May and also topped the P17.71 trillion recorded at the end of 2025. Reckoned from June last year, it increased from P17.27 trillion.
Domestic obligations comprised 67.33 percent of the total, while external debt accounted for the remainder.
The borrowing mix for next year remains skewed toward domestic sources at 72 percent, with the remaining 28 percent to come from abroad.
The government plans to borrow P3.3 billion and further increase this to P3.65 trillion in 2028 before reducing it to P3.55 trillion in 2029.
Most of the 2027 borrowings will again come from the domestic debt market at P2.39 trillion, up from the P1.92 trillion programmed for 2026. Of the total, the bulk, or P2.32 trillion, will be via the sale of fixed-rate treasury bonds, and another P60 billion from T-bills.
The remaining P914.98 billion will be sourced, higher than 2026’s P815.5 billion. This includes program loans (P366 billion), project loans (P183 billion), and bonds and other inflows (P365.98 billion).
The government, meanwhile, plans to allocate P2.7 trillion next year for debt payments.
Interest payments for 2027 were projected at P1.11 billion, higher than 2026’s P995.6 billion. Of this, P812.4 billion will cover domestic debt, while P301.87 billion will be for foreign obligations.
Meanwhile, P1.59 trillion has been earmarked for principal amortization — up from P1.05 trillion this year — with 1.33 billion to go toward domestic debt and P253.98 billion for external debt.
